Russia and India are in a race to reach the surface of the moon first, and the two countries' vehicles are expected to arrive there on the same day: August 23. Russia and India are seeking to reach the South Pole of the Moon, a region that all previous human missions have failed to reach.
The two missions aim to explore the region for water ice and other materials there, according to the British Daily Mail. On Friday, Russia launched the "Luna 25" mission carrying a lander, becoming the first Russian mission to explore the moon in nearly 50 years.
The mission was launched from the Festochny space station in the far east of Russia, the first Russian mission since 1976, which witnessed a similar mission during the era of the former Soviet Union.
Previously, 3 countries had successfully landed on the moon, namely:
- United State
- China
- Former Soviet Union
Moscow wants to benefit from its previous experience in this field in order to reach the moon before the Indian mission, "Chandrayan 3". Russia and India compete with other countries in the moon race, including the United States and China, which have advanced programs to explore the moon, especially its south pole.
It is expected that the Russian mission will reach the surface of the moon on August 23, the same day that is also expected to witness the arrival of the Indian spacecraft that was launched on July 14. The Russian spacecraft will fly for 5.5 days in the vicinity of the moon, then spend between 3 to 7 days in orbit around the moon, 100 kilometers away from it, before landing on its surface.
As for the Indian mission, it will carry out work for two weeks, noting that it cost New Delhi 75 million dollars, which is a sign that the world's largest country in terms of population is open to the accelerating business world's race in space.
The Russian space analyst, Vitaly Egorov, says that the goal of the Russian mission is not to study the moon, but rather a political goal represented in competition with great powers such as China, the United States and other countries, which want to be a tyrant in the space field.
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